A Joy and a Blessing

It is a joy and a blessing when man and spirit join together in search of the greater truths and awarenesses.”—Dr. Peebles

By Summer Bacon

Many years ago, when I first started channeling Dr. Peebles, he told me that I would eventually be channeling “by demonstration.” He didn't tell me what I would be demonstrating.

It took me about ten years before I understood that my work as a trance medium is primarily a demonstration of the wondrous things that can happen when one surrenders unabashedly to God's love.

It's funny that it took me so long to really understand this about my work. Seven years before I ever channeled for the first time (or even thought about doing it) I apparently already had an innate awareness of channeling as a demonstration of God's love. I discovered this recently when I came across a piece of writing that I did in 1989. It describes in detail my observations of Thomas Jacobson's channeling of Dr. Peebles. Thomas was my mentor. He didn't teach me how to channel, but by observing him carefully I learned everything I needed to know to get me started.

I was amazed when I read my own words about Thomas. It felt like I could insert my own name in place of his (with the exception of the physical description of Thomas). Now, after nearly eleven years as a trance medium, I know how precise my observations were. I was only twenty-eight years old in 1989, and working as Director of Employee B enefits for a human resources company. Little did I know...

Although Thomas no longer channels, his work with Dr. Peebles is documented in the book To Dance With Angels by Don and Linda Pendleton (available in bookstores or at www.todancewithangels.com ).

1989, Northridge , CaliforniaObservations about Thomas Jacobson

I am in absolute awe of Thomas Jacobson. As my friend, he is fun to tease. He's a bit of a chauvinist and that ticks me off sometimes, but he teases me back. He buys drinks for his friends, and loves hockey (how could he?) and eats lobster bisque, and gallons of hot fudge sundaes, and he says some incredibly wise and challenging things. He has a silly habit of interjecting comments into a conversation that he has only been half listening to. He's lots of fun, but he's kind of a drag sometimes. He's so loving and kind to animals, and has great taste in art. He's so loving and kind to people, and sometimes he's really tough on them too. He's a lot like a guy that you'd really just like to know, because he's a real regular guy, and just darn nice, and cute too, with a hearty, throaty laugh that gives way to ripples of giggles. His blue eyes sparkle and dance with sincerity that feels safe and friendly and honest. Yes, he's human, and I guess that makes me feel even more in awe of Thomas Jacobson, because he has a skill that is so extraordinary, and infinitely more inspiring than shooting a little black puck across ice and past a growling goalie.

What Thomas accomplishes is done by the power of his soul.

Thomas is an enigma; no doubt a better word has yet to be invented to describe him. He is a trance medium. He has this remarkable ability to vacate his body and allow a disembodied being, or Spirit, to enter it.Yeah, you gave your mom flowers on mother's day, you bought your boyfriend a Sony Walkman for his birthday, you gave your best friend's newborn a $100 savings bond—but, would you let them “borrow” your body for awhile to use it to do and say anything they choose with no editorial rights on your part?

Think about that for a moment. Your mom could use your vocal chords to say anything, and use your body in anyway she chooses. Sure, you love your mom, but would you love to have some of those biased and irrational words of hers come out of your mouth? Or, how about that funny habit of hers, where she kind of scrunches her face in a crude manner and then blinks her eyes rapidly when she's in deep thought? Would you want her to do that using your face?

Okay, so you might say that it wouldn't matter, if she was just borrowing your body for awhile, and you could come back to it. What difference would it make, right? Well, suppose she was inside of your body, and did these things in front of your close friends and their friends? And, suppose that some people (even your best friend) did not believe that your mom could do this, or that it was possible for you to vacate your body. They might end up thinking that your mom's words and actions were attributed to you. “Maybe,” they'd think, “Maybe this guy (or gal) is just crazy, or maybe schizophrenic or something.” Think about what it would really be like trying to convince someone that this vacating the body stuff was actually a real occurrence. No easy task, indeed.Now, that's an example of vacating your body and letting your mom “borrow” your body for awhile. Try to imagine leaving your body and opening it up to anyone, a spirit known or unknown to you. That would be like parking your Porsche in a neighborhood with the doors unlocked, the key in the ignition, and a sign posted that reads: “ Porsche availa b le to anyone who wants to b orrow it. Please return it b y 8:00pm, as I will need it for my date. Oh, and b y the way, please leave it cleaner an in b etter repair than when you b orrowed it. Thanks.”

Well, if your car gets stolen, you can get another one, or walk or take the bus. B ut, if your body gets permanently possessed by another spirit, where are you going to live? The thought of frolicking free and unencumbered by a body might seem glorious, but then, how do you attend that Kings hockey game at 7:30pm tomorrow night?

Thomas' courage is one reason why I find myself so captivated by his channeling. He is such a living, breathing symbol of how man and spirit are never separate; how the tangible and the mystical realms are bridged; how science can become more religious, and religion more scientific. The drama and magic of Thomas' channeling is a challenging experience, because it does not fit the traditional presentations of Spirit. He is no pulpit pounding, fear inspiring evangelist, and he is not a whiny sprout-eating guru who refuses to wash his hair with anything but rosemary rinse. (I happen to know that Thomas uses Head & Shoulders). There is no hoop-la, no ohms, no gong or incense: there's just Thomas and a chair.

Thomas is a very big man. I was struck by the irony of how such a big man could walk with such grace, his lightness of motion a striking contrast to his physical frame. At the Gathering Place, where he channels once a month [ Note : this was in 1989 when this article was written] in the humble and friendly setting of the Encino Women's Club, he stands on a small stage, sparkling with friendliness from head to toe, squinting at the lights, trying to see the faces in the audience, trying to make warm human contact. I ache to think of the handful of people who come to the Gathering Place like people who flock to see the circus freaks. Yet, despite the skeptics, Thomas laughs, and talks and challenges, and contacts, and trusts and allows for (and learns from) the worst of it, and is invigorated by the best of it.

Then, when the talking is done, he settles into “the chair” and the process of surrender begins. He surrenders to his audience when they become anxious to hear the wisdom of Dr. Peebles come through him. He gives a heavy sigh and settles comfortably in the chair. I feel as if his sigh becomes the breath that I catch in my own throat, and I become respectfully rigid as he spiritually disrobes himself. His love of the Kings' games, the beer, the lobster bisque, his girlfriend Connie, his friends—these are the springboard for this an greater act of love; this drama of intercourse between man and spirit. This very big man becomes even bigger than his body, as his love for the things and people who are closest to him is extended to all things and people near and far, holding nothing at arm's length.

Then it happens: he vacates his body and his body jolts as the exchange of energies between man and Spirit takes place. I can only imagine the magic and beauty of the experience from Thomas' perspective. It must be like making love with someone in the physical form and feeling like words and touch cannot adequately express the depth of love, and then wishing that you could be inside that person's mind, living and dreaming and feeling exactly as they do, joining in an orgasm of understanding, and then—just imagine!—with a tremendous jolt you suddenly become one in Love, and yet you do not lose your own identity in the process.

And, Dr. Peebles speaks, and I feel transported. I feel that Thomas is no longer in the room. The personality of Dr. Peebles is so different. The drama and magic of the moment is captivating. There on stage before us is the body of Thomas Jacobson, with Dr. Peebles' spirit inside. And, here sitting in the audience is my body, with me still inside. B ut, when Dr. Peebles speaks it feels as if he is inside of me too. His clarity of understanding, his great compassion, and his loving and brilliant words touch me deeply and stir me to life like a man's finger tickling down my spine. Dr. Peebles can be a gentle but rough “lover”—a word here and there is like a kiss that heals a wound. Other words feel like leeches, and I want to pull them off, but soon learn that they actually suck the poisons from my body, if I can endure a bit of pain.

This performance by man and Spirit is full of laughter and tears, tenderness and firmness, disbelief and understanding. Then, there is a subtle shift as Spirit becomes the audience, and the audience suddenly has the voice of Spirit as the individuals who ask questions begin to reveal their own brilliance. The separation between man and Spirit ceases to exist. The gap is closed by the end of Dr. Peebles' visit with us, and as he prepares to leave the curtain is not drawn between the stage and the audience, but instead closes around us and the rest of the universe like a blanket. All the world and all the universe is a stage, and we are all players in it. “We” mankind, and “We” Spirit.

With a final “God bless you each and everyone,” from Dr. Peebles, the legs of Thomas Jacobson begin to tremble as if Dr. Peebles must regretfully shake himself free of Thomas' body. Then, in the finale is the passing of the torch, if you will; the breath of life as it is passed back from Dr. Peebles to Thomas.

I let out my breath at the sight of Thomas' return, and Thomas inhales as if the breath he takes is his first. His eyes fly open wide like a newborn child. With that sudden beautiful realization that he has stood naked and vulnerable in front of us all, comes the final stroke of the pen as in a Shakespeare play—he blushes.

It is Thomas' act of surrender, more than the words of Dr. Peebles, that clues us in to the answers to all of our questions.

Surrender to life. Surrender to that journey to your heart. Surrender to the change, to the joy and pain, to the diversity of the world that makes it such an unequivocally fascinating and challenging place for us souls to live and learn. Surrender to the love that comes to you and through you. Surrender and give of yourself to the world with faith and trust and bountiful compassion and you will find yourself as the adventurer who can step into the blackest hole and come out again unscathed and renewed.

Please Read This Important Note:The interaction between you and Dr. Peebles today is a spiritual adventure, and I do hope that you enjoy it. The following disclaimer is intended to clarify a few points about the intended purpose of the guidance you may receive from Dr. Peebles. Dr. Peebles will answer questions on a variety of subjects, including health. He was a naturopath, and Civil War surgeon during his life on earth. But he obviously can't be considered a licensed physician from the other side. So please understand that any healing suggestions that he makes are from a spiritual perspective and they're in no way intended to replace the recommendations, advice, guidance, and prescriptions offered by your medical providers. Please use your own discretion and discernment regarding all matters discussed with Spirit, and any of the information received from Dr. Peebles. The way in which the information is received and applied in your life is, of course, your sole responsibility.